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Prospecting Microbial Strains for Bioremediation and Probiotics Development for Metaorganism Research and Preservation
09:49

Prospecting Microbial Strains for Bioremediation and Probiotics Development for Metaorganism Research and Preservation

Published on: October 31, 2019

The opportunistic coral pathogen Aspergillus sydowii contains dddP and makes dimethyl sulfide from

Mark Kirkwood1, Jonathan D Todd, Krystal L Rypien

  • 1School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, UK.

The ISME Journal
|September 25, 2009
PubMed

Insights

Aspergillus sydowii fungi produce dimethyl sulfide (DMS) from coral

Area of Science:

  • Marine microbiology and coral disease pathogenesis.

Background:

  • Aspergillus sydowii is linked to a significant epizootic affecting Caribbean sea fan corals.
  • Corals contain dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP), a compound produced by their dinoflagellate symbionts (Symbiodinium).
  • Some Aspergillus species can metabolize DMSP, releasing dimethyl sulfide (DMS).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the DMSP catabolizing ability (Ddd(+) phenotype) of Aspergillus sydowii strains.
  • To determine the presence and origin of the DMSP-catabolizing gene (dddP) in A. sydowii.

Main Methods:

  • Testing various A. sydowii strains for DMS production from DMSP.
  • Analyzing the genetic sequences of A. sydowii strains for homologs of the dddP gene.
  • Investigating the evolutionary origin of the dddP gene in Aspergillus.

Main Results:

  • All tested A. sydowii strains, regardless of origin, produced DMS from DMSP.
  • All strains possessed highly homologous (>87% identity) dddP gene sequences.
  • The dddP gene in Aspergillus fungi likely originated from alpha-proteobacteria via horizontal gene transfer.

Conclusions:

  • Aspergillus sydowii exhibits a consistent Ddd(+) phenotype, producing DMS from DMSP.
  • The presence of the dddP gene in A. sydowii suggests a conserved mechanism for DMSP catabolism.
  • Horizontal gene transfer from alpha-proteobacteria is the probable source of the dddP gene in these fungi.

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